Liquid Cartridge for a Personal Vaporizer Device

ABSTRACT

A cartridge for use in a personal vaporizer device, especially for use in an electronic cigarette, includes a housing which encloses a reservoir for storing a liquid to be vaporized in the personal vaporizer device, the housing having an opening in the top portion, a membrane compartment set into the opening in the top portion of the housing and attached to the inner walls of the housing, and a permeable membrane element held in the membrane compartment, the permeable membrane element being configured to convey liquid from the reservoir to opening in the top portion of the housing by capillary action.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a national phase entry under 35 U.S.C. § 371of International Application No. PCT/EP2020/000118, filed Jun. 19, 2020,published in English, which claims priority to European Application No.19188297.6 filed Jul. 25, 2019, the disclosures of which areincorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a cartridge for a personal vaporizerdevice, such as an electronic smoking article, and to a personalvaporizer device which includes or is capable of accommodating such acartridge.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Personal vaporizer devices, such as electronic cigarettes, electricallyoperated cigarettes or—in short—“e-cigarettes”, have gained inpopularity over the past ten years as an alternative to traditionalsmoking articles, like cigarettes, cigars, and cigarillos. Developmentsin the design and configuration of such vaporizer devices are on-goingto improve their performance and their reliability, as well as theirease of production and their production costs.

Electrically operated cigarettes usually include a heater powered by anelectrical power source and a liquid reservoir containing flavoured orunflavoured liquids that can be volatilized using the heater andtransferred to a user of the e-cigarette in an airflow through amouthpiece of the e-cigarette. Such an electrically operated cigaretteis for example known from the document US 2013/0160764 A1. Document US2018/0279682 A1 discloses a cartridge for an electronic cigarette, thecartridge including liquid absorbing assembly and a liquid container forsupplying tobacco liquid to a liquid absorbing element below the liquidcontainer. Document CN 109 717 519 A discloses a cartridge for anelectronic cigarette with a liquid suction member in a liquid suctionmember bracket mounted in a base.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above, one of the ideas of the invention is to provide anew and improved liquid-holding container or tank for use in a personalvaporizer device, like an electronic cigarette. In particular, it wouldbe desirable to provide such a new and improved liquid-holding containerin the form of an easily and quickly replaceable cartridge for apersonal vaporizer device. Moreover, one of the ideas of the inventionis to provide for an improved consumable that can reduce consumerexposure to aerosol forming liquids and discourages consumers fromrefilling empty containers with potentially incompatible liquids.

According to a first aspect of the present invention a cartridge for usein a personal vaporizer device, especially for use in an electroniccigarette, includes a housing enclosing a reservoir for storing a liquidto be vaporized in the personal vaporizer device, specifically in anelectronic cigarette, the housing having an opening. The cartridgefurther includes at least one permeable member arranged within thehousing, the permeable member being configured to convey liquid from thereservoir to the opening in the housing by capillary action. At leastone membrane compartment is set into the opening in a top portion of thehousing. The at least one permeable member is arranged in the at leastone compartment.

In some embodiments of the cartridge according to the first aspect, theat least one membrane compartment may be attached to the inner walls ofthe housing.

In some further embodiments of the cartridge according to the firstaspect, at least one permeable membrane element may be held in themembrane compartment.

In some embodiments, this permeable membrane element may be configuredto convey liquid from the reservoir to the opening in the top portion ofthe housing by capillary action.

In some further embodiments of the cartridge according to the firstaspect, the cartridge may further comprise an airflow channel runningextending along a central axis of symmetry of the housing through thereservoir. In some embodiments, this reservoir may be separated from theairflow channel by inner airflow channel walls.

In some further embodiments of the cartridge according to the firstaspect, the housing may have a cylindrical shape with an axiallongitudinal extension. The housing may have a first distal end and asecond distal end. The opening may be located at the first distal end orat the second distal end.

In some further embodiments of the cartridge according to the firstaspect, the at least one membrane compartment may comprise a compartmentwall having a plurality of compartment openings. In some embodiments,those compartment openings may form a sieve structure.

According to a second aspect of the present invention a cartridge foruse in a personal vaporizer device, especially for use in an electroniccigarette, includes a housing enclosing a reservoir for storing a liquidto be vaporized in the electronic cigarette. The housing has an openingin the top portion. A compartment is set into the opening in the topportion of the housing and attached to the inner walls of the housing. Apermeable member held in the compartment is configured to convey liquidfrom the reservoir to an opening in the top portion of the housing bycapillary action.

In some embodiments of the cartridge according to the second aspect, thecompartment may comprise a compartment wall having a plurality ofcompartment openings. In some embodiments, those compartment openingsmay form a sieve structure. In some embodiments, the compartment wall ofthe compartment with a plurality of compartment openings may be one ofor a combination of a side wall and a bottom wall.

In some further embodiments of the cartridge according to the secondaspect, the permeable member may be formed of a wicking materialselected from one of or a combination of the group of an open cellpolymer foam, a natural fibrous textile, a synthetic textile, porousceramics, ceramic wools, silica twines, silica braids, a stainless steelmesh, and nanoporous material having an organic or inorganic frameworksupporting a regular, porous structure.

In some further embodiments of the cartridge according to the secondaspect, the upper surface of the permeable member may be flush with thetop rim of the housing.

In some further embodiments of the cartridge according to the secondaspect, the upper surface of the permeable member may be sunk within thehousing by a setback distance with respect to the top rim of thehousing. In some embodiments, the cartridge may further comprise atear-off film arranged over this top rim of the housing. This tear-offfilm may seal the permeable member within the cartridge in aliquid-tight manner.

In some further embodiments of the cartridge according to the secondaspect, a tear-off film may be arranged over the top rim of the housing,sealing the permeable member within the cartridge in a liquid-tightmanner. In some embodiments, a sealing pad may be attached to the backof this tear-off film, the sealing pad having a thickness correspondingto the setback distance of the upper surface of the permeable member.

In some further embodiments of the cartridge according to the secondaspect, a liquid retention barrier may be arranged within the reservoir.In some embodiments, this liquid retention barrier may prevent at leasta partial amount of liquid in the upper portion of the reservoir fromflowing back into the lower portion of the reservoir.

In some further embodiments of the cartridge according to the secondaspect, the housing may be substantially tubular in shape. In someembodiments, the compartment may be set into a circular openingconcentric with the circular cross-section of this tubular housing. Insome embodiments, the permeable member may be disc-shaped having adiameter between 50% and 90% of the diameter of this tubular housing.

In some further embodiments of the cartridge according to the secondaspect, the housing may be made from a thermoplastic, particularly oneof polypropylene, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, polycarbonate,polystyrene and polyethylene.

According to a third aspect of the present invention an electroniccigarette comprises a removable cartridge, a main body and a permeablemember. The main body has a cartridge seating configured to receive theremovable cartridge and an atomizer having a heater and a fluid transferelement connected to the heater. The permeable member is configured toconvey liquid by capillary action from a liquid reservoir of thecartridge to an opening in the cartridge, so that liquid is conveyedfrom the liquid reservoir to the atomizer when the fluid transferelement is brought into contact with the permeable member.

In some embodiments of the electronic cigarette according to the thirdaspect, the fluid transfer element may be configured to be in directcontact with the permeable member of the cartridge upon placing thecartridge into the cartridge seating of the main body. In someembodiments thereof, the fluid transfer element may be configured tocompress the permeable member such that the fluid transfer element atleast partially protrudes into the cartridge.

In some embodiments of the electronic cigarette according to the thirdaspect, the electronic cigarette may further comprise a mouthpieceremovably attached to the main body and enclosing the cartridge seating.The mouthpiece may be configured to transfer vaporized liquid from theatomizer through an airflow channel running along a central axis ofsymmetry of the main body through the reservoir of the cartridge to amouthpiece opening and then to a user of the electronic cigarette.

In some embodiments of the electronic cigarette according to the thirdaspect, the fluid transfer element may be arranged at a bottom portionof the cartridge seating.

In some embodiments of the electronic cigarette according to the thirdaspect, the fluid transfer element may be formed of a wicking materialselected from one of or a combination of the group of silica twines,silica braids, cotton, a stainless steel mesh, and nanoporous materialhaving an organic or inorganic framework supporting a regular, porousstructure.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention a personalvaporizer device, such as an electronic cigarette, comprises a vaporizerhousing having a hollow chamber formed as a receptacle for a cartridgewith a permeable membrane element. The permeable membrane element isconfigured to convey liquid from a liquid reservoir of the cartridge toan opening in the top portion of the cartridge by capillary action. Thepersonal vaporizer device of the fourth aspect of the present inventionfurther comprises an atomizer section having a heating device configuredto vaporize liquid conveyed from the liquid reservoir of the cartridgeinto the personal vaporizer device, and a mouthpiece connected tovaporizer housing. The mouthpiece is configured to transfer vaporizedliquid from the atomizer section through a mouthpiece opening to a userof the personal vaporizer device.

In some embodiments of the personal vaporizer device according to thefourth aspect, the personal vaporizer device may further comprise avaporizer rear part configured to be removably attached to the vaporizerhousing, thereby enclosing the receptacle for the cartridge. In someembodiments, this vaporizer rear part may include a battery compartmentfor an electric energy storage.

In some further embodiments of the personal vaporizer device accordingto the fourth aspect, the heating device of the atomizer section may beconfigured to be in direct contact with the permeable membrane elementof the cartridge upon placing the cartridge into the receptacle of thevaporizer housing.

In some further embodiments of the personal vaporizer device accordingto the fourth aspect, the atomizer section may further include a wick towhich the heating device is connected, the wick having a wick contactsurface being configured to be in direct contact with the permeablemembrane element of the cartridge upon placing the cartridge into thereceptacle of the vaporizer housing. In some embodiments, this wick maybe formed of a wicking material selected from one of or a combination ofthe group of silica twines, silica braids, cotton, a stainless steelmesh, and nanoporous material having an organic or inorganic frameworksupporting a regular, porous structure.

In some further embodiments of the personal vaporizer device accordingto the fourth aspect, the personal vaporizer device may further comprisean electrical energy storage configured to deliver electric energy tothe heating device, the heating device being an electrically resistivemetal coil wound around the wick.

In some further embodiments of the personal vaporizer device accordingto the fourth aspect, the atomizer section may be arranged between thevaporizer housing and the mouthpiece of the personal vaporizer device.In some embodiments, the mouthpiece may be connected to the vaporizerhousing in such a way that air inlets to the atomizer section arearranged between the vaporizer housing and the mouthpiece of thepersonal vaporizer device.

In this way, the present invention provides a cartridge for a vaporizerunit of an electronic cigarette in which the heating element isintimately associated and/or integrated with the liquid delivery means.This provides not only an optimized construction for easy assembly ofthe parts of the vaporizer unit but also a most efficient transmissionor delivery of the liquid to be vaporized to the heating element. Thepersonal vaporizer device or electronic cigarette will thereforetypically have a heating system that includes the heating element of thevaporizer unit. The heating system is preferably electrically driven bya power source, such as a battery, in the personal vaporizer device orelectronic cigarette.

According to fifth aspect of the present invention a personal vaporizerdevice, especially an electronic cigarette, comprises a cartridgeaccording to any one of the aspects or embodiments described above. Thecartridge may in particular be replaceable and/or disposable upon fullor at least partial depletion of the aerosol forming liquid initiallycontained therein. For example, the cartridge may be held in an interiorreceptacle or cartridge seating of the electronic cigarette which may beaccessed by reversibly detaching outer components or housing parts ofthe electronic cigarette so that the old (depleted) cartridge may beremoved from the interior receptacle or cartridge seating and a new(liquid filled) cartridge may be placed inside the electronic cigaretteinstead.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be explained in greater detail with reference toexemplary embodiments depicted in the drawings as appended.

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the present invention and are incorporated in andconstitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate theembodiments of the present invention and together with the descriptionserve to explain the principles of the invention.

Other embodiments of the present invention and many of the intendedadvantages of the present invention will be readily appreciated as theybecome better understood by reference to the following detaileddescription. The elements of the drawings are not necessarily to scalerelative to each other. Like reference numerals designate correspondingsimilar parts.

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional side view of a liquid cartridgefor use in an electronic cigarette according to some embodiments;

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional side view of a liquid cartridgefor use in an electronic cigarette according to some furtherembodiments;

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional side view of an end portion of aliquid cartridge placed in an electronic cigarette in the vicinity of anatomizer according to some further embodiments;

FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional side view of an opened electroniccigarette in which a liquid cartridge is being inserted according tosome further embodiments;

FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional side view of a closed electroniccigarette in which a liquid cartridge has been inserted according tosome further embodiments;

FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional side view of a liquid cartridgefor use in an electronic cigarette according to some furtherembodiments;

FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional side view of liquid cartridge foruse in an electronic cigarette according to some further embodiments;

FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional side view of an opened electroniccigarette in which a liquid cartridge is being inserted according tosome further embodiments; and

FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional side view of a closed electroniccigarette in which a liquid cartridge has been inserted according tosome further embodiments.

It will be appreciated that common and/or well understood elements thatmay be useful or necessary in a commercially feasible embodiment are notnecessarily depicted in order to facilitate a more abstracted view ofthe embodiments. The elements of the drawings are not necessarilyillustrated to scale relative to each other. It will further beappreciated that certain actions and/or steps in an embodiment of amethod may be described or depicted in a particular order of occurrenceswhile those skilled in the art will understand that such specificitywith respect to sequence is not actually required. It will also beunderstood that the terms and expressions used in the presentspecification have the ordinary meaning as is accorded to such terms andexpressions with respect to their corresponding respective areas ofinquiry and study, except where specific meanings have otherwise beenset forth herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and describedherein, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the artthat a variety of alternate and/or equivalent implementations may besubstituted for the specific embodiments shown and described withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention.

Generally, this application is intended to cover any adaptations orvariations of the specific embodiments discussed herein. In the presentinvention, reference is made to personal vaporizer devices. Suchpersonal vaporizer devices may also be termed aerosol generators,aerosol generating devices or electronic cigarettes and are generallyintended to comprise any apparatus capable of converting electric energyand/or combustion energy into heat and subsequently heating and therebyvolatilizing particles in a vaporisable material, for example, a liquidor gaseous composition contained within a container part of the personalvaporizer device/electronic cigarette. Particularly, the personalvaporizer devices or electronic cigarettes of the present disclosure mayhave a replaceable container part designed as consumable good. Personalvaporizer devices and electronic cigarettes within the meaning of thepresent disclosure may transport the volatilized particles in an airflowthrough the vaporizer device to a user of the vaporizer device, the userof the vaporizer device being able to activate or deactivate thegeneration of aerosol and to control the duration, velocity and volumeof the airflow by means of puffing or inhaling action. Personalvaporizer devices within the meaning of the present invention arecapable of generating aerosol in variable amounts, depending on the rateand duration of heat transfer from a heating element in the vaporizerdevice to the vaporisable material.

Wicking materials within the meaning of the present disclosure maygenerally consist of porous and/or fibrous material. The bulk porousand/or fibrous material may be shaped as desired to form a wick or apermeable membrane. Porous and/or fibrous materials that may be used fora wicking material may be natural materials as well as artificiallymanufactured materials. Particularly, porous and/or fibrous materialswithin the meaning of the invention may comprise one of or a combinationof open cell polymer foams, natural fibrous textiles such as wool,cotton or felt, synthetic textiles, ceramics such as porous solids orceramic wools, silica twines, silica braids, stainless steel meshes, ornanoporous materials having an organic or inorganic framework supportinga regular, porous structure. Such porous and/or fibrous materials mayinclude consistently sized pores, openings or apertures that,collectively and/or individually, exhibit a certain capillarity andpermeability with regard to specific substances, such as fluids andliquids.

With reference FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings, a cartridge 10 in the formof a replaceable liquid-holding container is shown. The cartridge 10 isconfigured for use in a personal vaporizer device 20, such as anelectronic cigarette, electrically operating cigarette or “e-cigarette”,as exemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5 and explained hereinbelow.The cartridge 10 is designed as a consumable product, i.e. a one-timeuse product that may be discarded or replaced upon full or at leastpartial depletion of the liquid contained therein.

The cartridge 10 includes a housing 1 having an outer housing wall 1 aenclosing a liquid reservoir 4. The liquid reservoir 4 is used to storea liquid 5 to be vaporized in the electronic cigarette 20. The liquidreservoir 4 may for example be implemented or formed as a buffer or mayinclude a buffer therein. Generally spoken, the reservoir 4 may be aliquid container containing liquid 5 to be vaporized directly or may actas a buffer for transferring liquid 5 to be vaporized to a vaporizationmember.

The housing 1 may for example be substantially tubular in shape, i.e.the outer housing wall 1 a defines a cylindrical lateral surfacedefining a shell of the housing 1 around the reservoir 4. A base housingwall 1 b (exemplarily shown at the right hand side in FIG. 1) forms abase plane of the tubular housing, thereby giving the housing 1 a rightcircular cylindrical shape with an axial longitudinal extension. A firstdistal end (exemplarily shown at the left hand side in FIG. 1), oppositeto a second distal end at which the base housing wall 1 b is located, isformed with an opening of the housing.

The housing 1 may for example be made from a thermoplastic, such aspolypropylene, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, polycarbonate,polystyrene, polyethylene or even combinations thereof. An airflowchannel 7 may extend along a central axis of symmetry of the housing 1through the reservoir 4. The airflow channel 7 may be bounded by innerhousing walls 1 d, as best illustrated in FIG. 3. The airflow channel 7may also be tubular in shape so that the reservoir 4 between the airflowchannel 7 and the outer housing wall 1 a has the shape of a hollow rightcircular cylinder, with the substantially constant distance between theairflow channel 7 and the outer housing wall 1 a perpendicularly to thesurface of the outer housing wall 1 a defining the volume of the hollowcylinder in which liquid 5 may be held.

As best shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, at least one compartment 2 a may be setin the opening, having the shape of a ring or a ring segment. Theexemplary illustration in FIGS. 2 and 3 shows three substantiallycongruent and equally distributed compartment openings 2 b around thering shape of the opening between the airflow channel 7 and the outerhousing wall 1 a on the top side of the housing 1.

The housing 1 generally includes a housing rim 1 c on that sidecomprises a compartment wall having a plurality of compartment openings2 b. The compartment openings 2 b may generally be arrangedsymmetrically around a central axis of symmetry of the housing 1,particularly around the airflow channel 7 extending along that centralaxis of symmetry. The number of compartment openings 2 b is generallynot limited and may in particular be larger or smaller than three, asexemplarily illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3. If there is a singlecompartment opening 2 b in a ring shape, there may be a single materialbridge spanning the opening from the central airflow channel 7 to theouter housing wall 1 a in order to mechanically stabilize the centralairflow channel 7 within the center of the reservoir portion 4. If thereare two or more compartment openings 2 b, those compartment openings 2 bmay be separated by gaps 2 d between the respective compartment walls,the gaps 2 d being formed by thin material bridges spanning the openingfrom the central airflow channel 7 to the outer housing wall 1 a.

The compartment openings may in particular be membrane compartments 2 athat are used to hold permeable members, for example permeable membraneelements 3 formed of a wicking material selected from one of or acombination of the group of an open cell polymer foam, a natural fibroustextile, a synthetic textile, porous ceramics, ceramic wools, silicatwines, silica braids, a stainless steel mesh, and nanoporous materialhaving an organic or inorganic framework supporting a regular, porousstructure. The permeable membrane elements 3 may have an outer shape ofa ring or ring segment with a predefined thickness so that the permeablemembrane elements 3 may be let in flush with the compartment openings 2b.

Depending on the number of compartment openings 2 b there may be one ormore permeable members that are arranged within the housing 1. Thepermeable members are configured to convey liquid 5 from the inside ofthe reservoir 4 to and through the opening in the housing 1 by capillaryaction. By choosing an appropriate thickness for the slabs of thepermeable members, the upper surfaces of the permeable members may bearranged flush with the top rim 1 c of the housing 1. Alternatively, itmay be possible to form deeper compartment openings 2 b or thinnerpermeable members so that the upper surfaces of the permeable membersare recessed within the housing 1 by a setback distance with respect tothe top rim 1 c of the housing 1.

As shown in FIG. 1, the permeable members may be sealed in within thecartridge 10 in a liquid-tight manner, for example by providing atear-off film 6 that is arranged over the top rim 1 c of the housing 1.The tear-off film 6 may for example by plastic film adhered to the toprim 1 c by mechanically removable adhesives. The tear-off film 6 mayhave a generally circular shape that has a slightly larger diameter thanthe diameter of the opening in the housing 1 in order to fully cover theopening. A pull-off tab may be formed at one side of the tear-off film 6for a user to grip, facilitating removal of the tear-off film 6 beforeuse of the cartridge 10 in an electronic cigarette 20.

FIG. 3 illustrates a detail view of the top portion of the cartridge ofFIGS. 1 and 2 in contact with an atomizer or vaporization member. Thecartridge 10 may be removably held in a cartridge seating of a main bodyof an electronic cigarette. The electronic cigarette includes anatomizer which has a heater 14, for example formed as an electricallyresistive wire or wirelike element, and a fluid transfer element 14 aconnected to the heater 14. The heater 14 may be placed centrally andsubstantially over a top opening 7 a of the airflow channel 7 runningthrough the cartridge 10. The fluid transfer element 14 a may be locatedover the compartment opening(s) 2 b and may in particular be in contactwith the permeable member(s) set in the compartment opening(s) 2 b.

The fluid transfer element 14 a may be formed of a wicking materialselected from one of or a combination of the group of silica twines,silica braids, cotton, a stainless steel mesh, and nanoporous materialhaving an organic or inorganic framework supporting a regular, porousstructure. The fluid transfer element 14 a can be arranged such that itis in direct contact with the permeable member(s) of the cartridge 10when the cartridge 10 is placed into the cartridge seating of the mainbody. Specifically, it may be possible to form the fluid transferelement 14 a in such a manner that the permeable member(s) arecompressed into their respective compartment opening(s) 2 b, therebyallowing the fluid transfer element 14 a to at least partially protrudeinto the cartridge 10. For example, the fluid transfer element 14 a maybe a linear element having a flexible bulge or curvature that pointstowards the region in which the compartment opening(s) 2 b of thecartridge 10 will be lying once inserted into the electronic cigarette20.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show sectional views of an electronic cigarette 20 with aremovable cartridge 10 inserted therein. The electronic cigarette 20 hasa main body 15 with a receptacle portion 15 a enclosing a cartridgeseating 16. The cartridge seating 16 is dimensioned to receive theremovable cartridge 10 therein. In the bottom portion of the cartridgeseating 16 the fluid transfer element 14 a of the atomizer may belocated. The atomizer may have a heater 14 coupled to the fluid transferelement 14 a. The heater 14 may for example include an electricallyresistive metal coil wound around an atomizer wick 13.

The cartridge 10 inserted into the cartridge seating 16 includes one ormore permeable members which are configured to convey liquid 5 bycapillary action from the liquid reservoir 4 of the cartridge 10 to anopening in the cartridge 10. This opening is in vicinity of the heater14 where liquid 5 is first conveyed from the liquid reservoir 4 to thepermeable member(s), then on to the fluid transfer element 14 a incontact with the permeable member(s) and from there to the heater 14.The contact between the fluid transfer element 14 a and the permeablemember(s) is made upon removing the tear-off film 6 of the cartridge 10and then placing the cartridge 10 into the cartridge seating 16 with theopening facing towards the fluid transfer element 14 a.

A mouthpiece 11 is removably attached to the main body 15 and enclosesthe cartridge seating 16. The mouthpiece 11 allows transfer of vaporizedliquid 5 from the atomizer through the airflow channel 7 within thehousing of the cartridge 10. Coaxially with the airflow channel 7 a mainbody channel 15 b runs along a central axis of symmetry of the main body15 through the reservoir 4 of the cartridge 10 to a mouthpiece opening12 and then to a user of the electronic cigarette 20. Air inlets 15 c inthe outer walls 15 a of the main body 15 let air pass from the outsideof the electronic cigarette 20 to the heater 14 of the atomizer wherethe liquid 5 is vaporized and an air/liquid mixture is transported inthe main body channel 15 b to a mouthpiece air channel 12 a within themouthpiece 11 leading to the mouthpiece opening 12.

The heater 14 is energized by electrical energy from an electricalenergy storage 19 a located in a bottom portion 18 of the main body 15of the electronic cigarette 20. The electrical energy storage 19 a mayalso be configured to deliver electric energy to a control device 19 b,such as a microcontroller, of the electronic cigarette 20 that controlsthe operation of the electronic cigarette 20 and its electriccomponents.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show possible configurations for a cartridge 10 to be usedin a personal vaporizer device 20, such as an electronic cigarette 20 asexemplarily illustrated and explained in conjunction with FIGS. 8 and 9.The cartridge 10 includes a housing 1 enclosing a reservoir 4 forstoring a liquid 5 to be vaporized in the electronic cigarette 20. Thehousing 1 has an opening in the top portion (shown on the left hand sidein the illustrations of FIGS. 6 and 7). The housing 1 may for example bemade from a thermoplastic, particularly one of polypropylene,acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, polycarbonate, polystyrene andpolyethylene. The housing 1 may for example be substantially tubular inshape.

One or more compartments 2 a are set into the opening in the top portionof the housing 1. This compartment 2 a is attached to the inner walls 1d of the housing 1. For a tubular housing 1, the compartment 2 a can beset into a circular opening concentric with the circular cross-sectionof the housing 1. One or more permeable members, for example permeablemembrane elements 3, are held in the compartment 2 a. The permeablemembrane elements 3 are designed to convey liquid 5 from the inside ofthe reservoir 4 to the opening in the top portion of the housing 1 bycapillary action. The compartment 2 a may for example have a compartmentwall having a plurality of compartment openings 2 b. In this manner, theplurality of compartment openings 2 b are distributed about the bottomwall and/or side walls of the compartment 2 a to form a sieve structure2 c, i.e. a structure with smaller openings bridged by thin materialbridges. Liquid may permeate through this sieve structure 2 c, but alarger permeable membrane element 3 may be tightly held in place withinthe compartment 2 a.

Permeable membrane element(s) 3 that may be held in the compartment 2 amay for example be formed of a wicking material such as an open cellpolymer foam, a natural fibrous textile, a synthetic textile, porousceramics, ceramic wools, silica twines, silica braids, a stainless steelmesh, and nanoporous material having an organic or inorganic frameworksupporting a regular, porous structure. The shape of the permeablemembrane element 3 may for example be designed such that it conforms tothe shape of the hollow of the compartment 2 a so that the upper surfaceof the permeable membrane element 3 is flush with a top rim 1 c of thehousing 1. Alternatively, it may be possible to form a thinner permeablemembrane element 3 so that its upper surface is sunk within the housing1 by a setback distance with respect to the top rim 1 c of the housing1. For housings 1 of substantially tubular shape, the permeable membraneelement 3 can be formed in a disc shape with a diameter between about50% and 90% of the diameter of the tubular housing 1.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the permeable membrane element 3 may besealed in within the cartridge 10 in a liquid-tight manner, for exampleby providing a tear-off film 6 that is arranged over the top rim 1 c ofthe housing 1. The tear-off film 6 may for example by plastic filmadhered to the top rim 1 c by mechanically removable adhesives. Thetear-off film 6 may have a generally circular shape that has a slightlylarger diameter than the diameter of the opening in the housing 1 inorder to fully cover the opening. A pull-off tab may be formed at oneside of the tear-off film 6 for a user to grip, facilitating removal ofthe tear-off film 6 before use of the cartridge 10 in an electroniccigarette 20.

For the case of a sunk upper surface of the permeable membrane element 3(as exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 7), a sealing pad 6 a may beattached to the back of the tear-off film 6. Such a sealing pad 6 a mayhave a thickness corresponding to the setback distance of the uppersurface of the permeable membrane element 3 within the housing 1 so thatthe sealing pad 6 a holds the permeable membrane element 3 in placeduring transportation and shipping of the cartridge 10.

The cartridge 10 may further be equipped with a liquid retention barrier4 a, 4 b that is arranged within the reservoir 4. Such liquid retentionbarriers 4 a, 4 b entirely or partially prevent liquid in the upperportion of the reservoir 4 to flowing back into the lower portion of thereservoir 4.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 a personal vaporizer device 20 such as anelectronic cigarette 20 may include a main body with a housing 15. Thishousing can include a cartridge seating or cartridge receptacle 16 for acartridge 10 as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. An atomizer within the main body15 includes a heater 14 and a fluid transfer element 13 a. The heater 14may be coupled to the fluid transfer element 14 a. The heater 14 may forexample include an electrically resistive metal coil wound around anatomizer wick 13.

The cartridge 10 inserted into the cartridge seating 16 includes one ormore permeable members or permeable membrane elements 3 which areconfigured to convey liquid 5 by capillary action from the liquidreservoir 4 of the cartridge 10 to an opening in the cartridge 10. Thisopening is in vicinity of the heater 14 where liquid 5 is first conveyedfrom the liquid reservoir 4 to the permeable member(s), then on to thefluid transfer element 13 a in contact with the permeable member(s) andfrom there to the heater 14. The contact between the fluid transferelement 13 a and the permeable member(s) is made upon removing thetear-off film 6 of the cartridge 10 and then placing the cartridge 10into the cartridge seating 16 with the opening facing towards the fluidtransfer element 14 a. The fluid transfer element 13 a may in particularbe formed as a wick contact surface 13 a of the atomizer wick 13.

A mouthpiece 11 is removably attached to the main body 15 and enclosesthe cartridge seating 16. The mouthpiece 11 allows transfer of vaporizedliquid 5 from the atomizer through the airflow channel 7 within thehousing of the cartridge 10. Air inlets 15 c in the outer walls 15 a ofthe main body 15 let air pass from the outside of the electroniccigarette 20 to the heater 14 of the atomizer where the liquid 5 isvaporized and an air/liquid mixture is transported to a mouthpiece airchannel within the mouthpiece 11 leading to the mouthpiece opening 12.The air/liquid mixture may then be expelled at the mouthpiece opening 12(indicated by reference sign A) and inhaled by a user.

The heater 14 is energized by electrical energy from an electricalenergy storage located in a bottom portion 18 of the main body 15 of theelectronic cigarette 20. The electrical energy storage may also beconfigured to deliver electric energy to a control device, such as amicrocontroller, of the electronic cigarette 20 that controls theoperation of the electronic cigarette 20 and its electric components.The bottom portion 18 may in particular be a rear part of the electroniccigarette 20 that is configured to be removably attached to thevaporizer housing 15, for example by a screwing or shutting action S tointerlock a female thread 17 formed in the inside walls of the cartridgereceptacle 16 with a male thread 19 formed on the outside walls of therear part 18. The rear part 18 can thus be detached from the cartridgereceptacle 16, a cartridge 10 be inserted by a pushing action P and thecartridge receptacle 16 enclosed by re-attaching the rear part 18 again.

Although specific embodiments of the invention are illustrated anddescribed herein, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill inthe art that a variety of alternate and/or equivalent implementationsexist. It should be appreciated that the exemplary embodiment orexemplary embodiments are examples only and are not intended to limitthe scope, applicability, or configuration in any way. Rather, theforegoing summary and detailed description will provide those skilled inthe art with a convenient road map for implementing at least oneexemplary embodiment, it being understood that various changes may bemade in the function and arrangement of elements described in anexemplary embodiment without departing from the scope as set forth inthe appended claims and their legal equivalents. Generally, thisapplication is intended to cover any adaptations or variations of thespecific embodiments discussed herein.

It will also be appreciated that in this document the terms “comprise”,“comprising”, “include”, “including”, “contain”, “containing”, “have”,“having”, and any variations thereof, are intended to be understood inan inclusive (i.e. non-exclusive) sense, such that the process, method,device, apparatus or system described herein is not limited to thosefeatures or parts or elements or steps recited but may include otherelements, features, parts or steps not expressly listed or inherent tosuch process, method, article, or apparatus. Furthermore, the terms “a”and “an” used herein are intended to be understood as meaning one ormore unless explicitly stated otherwise. Moreover, the terms “first”,“second”, “third”, etc. are used merely as labels, and are not intendedto impose numerical requirements on or to establish a certain ranking ofimportance of their objects.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

-   1 Housing-   1 a Outer housing wall-   1 b Base housing wall-   1 c Top housing rim-   2 a Compartment-   2 b Compartment opening-   2 c Sieve structure-   2 d Compartment gaps-   3 Permeable membrane element-   4 Liquid reservoir-   4 a/4 b Liquid retention barrier-   5 Liquid-   6 Tear-off film-   6 a Sealing pad-   Airflow channel-   7 a Channel opening-   7 b Channel opening-   10 Liquid cartridge-   11 Mouthpiece-   12 Mouthpiece opening-   13 Atomizer wick-   13 a Wick contact surface-   14 Atomizer heater-   14 a Fluid transfer element-   15 Main body-   15 a Main body housing-   15 b Main body channel-   15 c Air inlet-   16 Cartridge seating-   17 Female thread-   18 Vaporizer rear part-   19 Male thread-   20 Electronic cigarette-   21 Atomizer-   A Airflow-   P Pushing direction-   S Shutting direction

1. A cartridge for use in a personal vaporizer device, the cartridgecomprising: a housing which encloses a reservoir for storing a liquid tobe vaporized in the personal vaporizer device, the housing having anopening in a top portion; a membrane compartment set into the opening inthe top portion of the housing and attached to the inner walls of thehousing; and a permeable membrane element held in the membranecompartment, the permeable membrane element being configured to conveyliquid from the reservoir to the opening in the top portion of thehousing by capillary action.
 2. The cartridge of claim 1, wherein themembrane compartment comprises a compartment wall having a plurality ofcompartment openings forming a sieve structure.
 3. The cartridge ofclaim 2, wherein the compartment wall of the membrane compartment is oneof or a combination of a side wall and a bottom wall.
 4. The cartridgeof claim 1, wherein the permeable membrane element is formed of awicking material selected from one of or a combination of the group ofan open cell polymer foam, a natural fibrous textile, a synthetictextile, porous ceramics, ceramic wools, silica twines, silica braids, astainless steel mesh, and nanoporous material having an organic orinorganic framework supporting a regular, porous structure.
 5. Thecartridge of claim 1, wherein an upper surface of the permeable membraneelement is flush with a top rim of the housing.
 6. The cartridge ofclaim 1, wherein an upper surface of the permeable membrane element issunk within the housing by a setback distance with respect to a top rimof the housing.
 7. The cartridge of claim 5, further comprising: atear-off film arranged over the top rim of the housing and sealing thepermeable membrane element within the cartridge in a liquid-tightmanner.
 8. The cartridge of claim 6, further comprising: a tear-off filmarranged over the top rim of the housing and sealing the permeablemembrane element within the cartridge in a liquid-tight manner; and asealing pad attached to a back of the tear-off film, the sealing padhaving a thickness corresponding to the setback distance of the uppersurface of the permeable membrane element.
 9. The cartridge of claim 1,further comprising: a liquid retention barrier arranged within thereservoir, the liquid retention barrier preventing at least a partialamount of liquid in an upper portion of the reservoir from flowing backinto a lower portion of the reservoir.
 10. The cartridge of claim 1,wherein the housing is substantially tubular in shape, the membranecompartment being set into a circular opening concentric with a circularcross-section of the housing.
 11. The cartridge of claim 10, wherein thepermeable membrane element is disc-shaped having a diameter between 50%and 90% of a diameter of the substantially tubular housing.
 12. Thecartridge of claim 1, wherein the housing is made from a thermoplastic.13. A personal vaporizer device, comprising: a vaporizer housing havinga hollow chamber formed as a receptacle for a cartridge with a permeablemembrane element, configured to convey liquid from a liquid reservoir ofthe cartridge to an opening in a top portion of the cartridge bycapillary action; an atomizer section having a heating device configuredto vaporize liquid conveyed from the liquid reservoir of the cartridgeinto the personal vaporizer device; and a mouthpiece connected to thevaporizer housing, the mouthpiece being configured to transfer vaporizedliquid from the atomizer section through a mouthpiece opening to a userof the personal vaporizer device.
 14. The personal vaporizer device ofclaim 13, further comprising: a vaporizer rear part configured to beremovably attached to the vaporizer housing, thereby enclosing thereceptacle for the cartridge.
 15. The personal vaporizer device of claim14, wherein the vaporizer rear part includes a battery compartment foran electric energy storage.
 16. The personal vaporizer device of claim13, wherein the heating device of the atomizer section is configured tobe in direct contact with the permeable membrane element of thecartridge upon placing the cartridge into the receptacle of thevaporizer housing.
 17. The personal vaporizer device of claim 13,wherein the atomizer section further includes a wick to which theheating device is connected, the wick having a wick contact surfacebeing configured to be in direct contact with the permeable membraneelement of the cartridge upon placing the cartridge into the receptacleof the vaporizer housing.
 18. The personal vaporizer device of claim 17,wherein the wick is formed of a wicking material selected from one of ora combination of the group of silica twines, silica braids, cotton, astainless steel mesh, and nanoporous material having an organic orinorganic framework supporting a regular, porous structure.
 19. Thepersonal vaporizer device of claim 17, further comprising: an electricalenergy storage configured to deliver electric energy to the heatingdevice, the heating device being an electrically resistive metal coilwound around the wick.
 20. The personal vaporizer device of claim 13,wherein the atomizer section is arranged between the vaporizer housingand the mouthpiece of the personal vaporizer device.
 21. The personalvaporizer device of claim 20, wherein the mouthpiece is connected to thevaporizer housing in such a way that air inlets to the atomizer sectionare arranged between the vaporizer housing and the mouthpiece of thepersonal vaporizer device.
 22. The cartridge of claim 12, wherein thethermoplastic is polypropylene, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene,polycarbonate, polystyrene, or polyethylene.
 23. A personal vaporizersystem, comprising: a cartridge comprising: a housing which encloses areservoir for storing a liquid to be vaporized, the housing having anopening in a top portion; a membrane compartment set into the opening inthe top portion of the housing and attached to inner walls of thehousing; and a permeable membrane element held in the membranecompartment, the permeable membrane element being configured to conveyliquid from the reservoir to the opening in the top portion of thehousing by capillary action; and a personal vaporizer device comprising:a vaporizer housing having a hollow chamber formed as a receptacle forthe cartridge; an atomizer section having a heating device configured tovaporize liquid conveyed from the reservoir of the cartridge into thepersonal vaporizer device; and a mouthpiece connected to the vaporizerhousing, the mouthpiece being configured to transfer vaporized liquidfrom the atomizer section through a mouthpiece opening to a user of thepersonal vaporizer device.